>Well, just for a moment.
Yesterday, my sister had her baby. He was two weeks early, which didn’t really worry me. What did worry me was the fact that she labored for almost 30 straight hours before the hospital admitted her. The fucking INSURANCE wouldn’t cover her until she was dilated 3 centimeters. It didn’t care how many hours of torture her body had been through, 10 or 30. We went to the hospital three times before they finally said, “Oh yeah. You need to stay here.” I am now on a mission to eradicate insurance from the earth.
But, I digress. Factor one leading up to my mini-mind losing moment: I (and of course my sister) had no sleep this weekend. I woke up on Saturday morning and didn’t get into bed until about 8:30 PM on Sunday. I sat up with my sister, talking her through each grueling contraction. My heart tearing in two every time she said, “I can’t do this!”
Finally, after 30 hours of labor, my sister gets her epidural. How any woman can finish labor and delivery without one is beyond me. Everything seemed to be going fine. My sister finally got a few hours of much needed rest. We were talking about silly things like what Halloween costume to buy the baby.
Factor 2 leading to losing my mind:
The sack holding the baby started coming out when my sister was only dilated 7 centimeters. We call the nurse. She’s checking things out, when that horrible alert starts on the fetal heart monitor. Panic courses through me. Suddenly, there are 5 doctors and nurses flooding into the room. I run out in order to get out of their way. My mom is in there with my sister. A nurse comes out. More doctors come in. I hear “Clear the hall way!” I flatten myself against a wall and start speed dialing my dad and my sister’s husband who all went to get dinner. They thought we still had a couple of hours before the excitement began.
I then see my sister with an oxygen mask on her face being wheeled into surgery. My mom is suiting up in blue scrubs with a look of terror on her face. Literally within five minutes of the fetal heart monitor going off, the emergency C-Section is done and the healthy baby has been born. It all happened so fast.
So with about 300 emotions coursing through my mind and no sleep for my body, I finally got home and saw the way blocked. I lost it and started screaming like a banshee until the asshole moved his car. I tell you, I slept really well when I finally climbed into bed.
>Man alive, I’m so sorry she had to go through all of that, only to end it with a C-section! Really, that is heartbreaking. Birth is no picnic. Glad you got through it- what a kind loving thing to do in staying with her. Cheers.
>Thanks. My sister keeps telling me that she has to do something for me. I keep telling her, that’s what family does for each other. Nothing is needed in return.